I own a Ortofon Rondo Red and am now in the upgrade proces to either a Ortofon Quintet Blue or a Bronze version.
I'm testing the Bronze at the moment, works well on funk, house and easy rock. Also the 3d imaging, details and resolution are better.
The only thing i'm wondering about is that the Quintet Blue maybe better for playing my kind of music. The Bronze gets's lot of great reviews over how well it plays classical music but i like to play Radiohead as well.
Anyone got suggestions which of the 2 i should use ?
I'm testing the Bronze at the moment, works well on funk, house and easy rock. Also the 3d imaging, details and resolution are better.
The only thing i'm wondering about is that the Quintet Blue maybe better for playing my kind of music. The Bronze gets's lot of great reviews over how well it plays classical music but i like to play Radiohead as well.
Anyone got suggestions which of the 2 i should use ?
Last edited:
The red and blue share the same coil and the bronze and black have the same coil.
In the UK you can do a trade in for your old cartridge -
Ortofon Moving Coil Trade-In Scheme Explained
In the UK you can do a trade in for your old cartridge -
Ortofon Moving Coil Trade-In Scheme Explained
That's right, 25% discount with the trade in. Ortofon doesn't want the old ones to get re-tipped.
Thinking about the reason for your post reminds me of the age old problem beset those who like listening to music ------and don't have deep pockets where (some ) top end cartridges will give the best of both worlds .
Manufacturers aren't stupid, you want hard rock/heavy metal but you want the delicateness of good classical music combined with that elusive component " musicality " .
That could cost $1000,s but still gems appear usually for a short time till the designer/manufacturer gets told --too cheap up the price then stepped varieties appear all giving a hint of the one at the very top .
But that doesn't always work out and some really expensive cartridges have bombed with the "golden ears " telling you to buy the downmarket version.
When that happens you get mark 11 versions and mark 111 versions and so on to again suggest to the public --buy our latest mark XX its got our latest design innovation its our "best " ( till the next one ) and so on ad infinatum .
Would we have it any other way ? probably not as it holds the hi-fi enthusiasts interest---and it sells.
But bottom line each persons ears are unique so buy what sounds good to you and enjoy listening to music.
Manufacturers aren't stupid, you want hard rock/heavy metal but you want the delicateness of good classical music combined with that elusive component " musicality " .
That could cost $1000,s but still gems appear usually for a short time till the designer/manufacturer gets told --too cheap up the price then stepped varieties appear all giving a hint of the one at the very top .
But that doesn't always work out and some really expensive cartridges have bombed with the "golden ears " telling you to buy the downmarket version.
When that happens you get mark 11 versions and mark 111 versions and so on to again suggest to the public --buy our latest mark XX its got our latest design innovation its our "best " ( till the next one ) and so on ad infinatum .
Would we have it any other way ? probably not as it holds the hi-fi enthusiasts interest---and it sells.
But bottom line each persons ears are unique so buy what sounds good to you and enjoy listening to music.
Yes, i want to believe! All manufacturers doing it this way. Then again reviews were saying the Bronze in for classis music, not Ortofon.
I'm still in the burn-in stage of the Bronze, tweaking a bit with the powersupply caps and then go back to the Rondo Red to hear the difference.
I wish my English was better...
I'm still in the burn-in stage of the Bronze, tweaking a bit with the powersupply caps and then go back to the Rondo Red to hear the difference.
I wish my English was better...
Have you tried different load settings? You might prefer the sound of a different load (i.e. you could try 400 ohm or 1000 ohm instead of 100 ohm)
Oops my mistake. You have a MM cartridge and not a MC. You could however try different capacitance settings.
No, it's MC with 0.3V output. It's not easy to change the load resistor from the board, which is now at 70 Ohm (best for the Rondo red). It has to be >20 Ohm for the Bronze, a lot of users put it at 100 Ohm. I'm gonna try that out.
Bedankt.
Bedankt.
I would get it retipped personally. I have a rondo bronze sporting the cantilever off an AT155LC and I rather like it. ESCO in UK should be able to do a retip for under £200.
To me the Rondo is superior to the Quintet.
To me the Rondo is superior to the Quintet.
Doesn't the Bronze have a Fritz Gyger tip (FG80)? Nothing wrong with the original tip in my opinion. Just needs careful setup (way more finicky than a conical tip).
It's possible that you simply prefer a different sounding cartridge. Have you tried Audio Technica, Van den Hul, Benz Micro, Denon?
My Bronze had been de-gygered in an accident so I took the opportuninty to upgrade to Beryllium.
The Rondo was a transition between the old MCx000 range and the Jubilee so shares the gold plated wire of the quintet black with a nicely damped body. The Quintet just doesn't look the part to me and is a step back in many specs for considerable $$$. But I am not afraid to get old cartridges rebuild and I understand that worries many.
The Rondo was a transition between the old MCx000 range and the Jubilee so shares the gold plated wire of the quintet black with a nicely damped body. The Quintet just doesn't look the part to me and is a step back in many specs for considerable $$$. But I am not afraid to get old cartridges rebuild and I understand that worries many.
If the retip is done properly I don't see an issue. Though sometimes it's better to buy a new cartridge on offer as retipping is not exactly cheap. Have an Empire MC1000 and Denon DL-S1 retipped by VdH which sound great. Personally I also prefer the design of the old Rondo Bronze to the Quintet (sometimes a high cartridge isn't as easy to fit due to limitations in tonearm adjustment).
If there is no suspension damage expert stylus charge around £200. My Rondostein was done in Russia and I lucked out on a NOS donor AT155 so the total cost including buying the Rondo on ebay was £150.
After exhausting listening sessions i decided to keep the Ortofon Bronze. Load resistor now at 90 Ohm and with the hours playtime the sound changed. It is as the reviews say, wide stereo-image, deep bass, fast, good with voices and instruments are really getting out in a fine way. Downside, it can take everything from jazz,rock, funk,trash,house and the Bronze won't blink. It never hears distorted. Maybe a little better highs would be more satisfying. But i can change that using silver layered speakercables. Most of all is that the music is gripping and alive and wants me to move. or sing along (i'm alone in my room )
Erik.
Speakers >tannoy xt8f
Amp >Aksa NAKSA 80
Turntable >modified Rega P5
Erik.
Speakers >tannoy xt8f
Amp >Aksa NAKSA 80
Turntable >modified Rega P5
Last edited: